If you were fortunate enough to invest $1,000 in Bitcoin (BTC +0.22%) a decade ago on Sept. 3, 2016, you would have roughly $126,810 today — an incredible return that absolutely crushed the market. Take a look at that incredible growth in the chart below:

Data by YCharts.

Note that the calculation excludes trading fees and taxes, and the exact total fluctuates daily with Bitcoin’s price. Still, turning four figures into six figures in one decade is a remarkable result by any standard.

Bitcoin

Today’s Change

(0.22%) $175.75

Current Price

$79,942.00

Bitcoin’s 62% annualized return beat every mainstream asset since 2016

That’s putting it lightly. Few things came remotely close to a 12,581% return — a 62% annual rate — in that time. Compare Bitcoin’s annual rate of return with some other options you would have had in 2016.

Source: YCharts.

Wall Street now holds Bitcoin despite a decade of major crashes

Bitcoin suffered some brutal drawdowns along the way, and most investors jumped ship. It wasn’t easy to hold on after a 70% crash while the “smart money” said to stay far away from Bitcoin.

Things have changed. Major institutions across Wall Street now hold Bitcoin. Motley Fool Research tracks major Bitcoin holdings by governments, public companies, and exchange-traded funds.

Image source: Getty Images.

Of course, the flip side of that adoption is that it’s highly unlikely we’ll see returns in the future that come close to what we saw in the past. Still, I think Bitcoin is a smart addition as a small portion of a well-balanced portfolio.